Emergence
by redhunter27
Summary: The way in which he began to live again was simple in theory, yet convoluted in practice. To be accepted by others, he would first have to make peace with himself. A twist on the stereotypical 'Gohan goes to school' scenario, in which Gohan is gay.
1. Chapter 1

_Hey everyone, welcome to my first fic on this site!_

 _This is a coming of age/acceptance story in which Gohan learns who he is, away from the influences of both of his parents. Many of the cliche components in a 'Gohan goes to school' fic will not be included (e.g. Saiyaman, Videl being a nun when it comes to boys). No endgame pairing has been decided yet, but I do have a slight idea of what I want to happen._

 _Hope you all enjoy :D_

 _Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, or any of its characters._

 _Warning: This is a slashfic, so if it's not your cup of tea, turn back now ;)_

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

' _Crap, crap, crap! Of course I'm late!'_

Gohan dashed through the halls of Orange Star High School as fast as humanly possible, trying to not push his speed as he ran to the general office. Despite leaving early, he didn't enter the school until 20 minutes after classes commenced. He had even stayed at Capsule Corp. the night before so that he wouldn't have to fly as far to school.

All his carefully laid plans had been foiled by the stupidity of others, as he had stopped two bank robberies and a mugging on his way. _'Why can't things just go my way for one stupid day.'_

As he entered the main office, Gohan let out a sigh of relief at it being empty except for the receptionist. The lack of line allowed the half-Saiyan to collect his timetable without delay and head towards his classroom. As he approached the door to his class, Gohan felt his new phone vibrate in its pocket.

 _Good luck on your first day! Have fun :D – Bulma_

Gohan chuckled under his breath as he quickly typed out a reply. It was because of her in the first place that he had a phone that new, there was no way his Mother would have condoned spending the amount of money it had cost. Bulma had explained the ins and outs of how mobile phones worked, showing Gohan how to text, call people and download apps. She had even set him up with a 'Facebook'. _'Whatever that even is. I don't need it anyway.'_

Tucking his phone back into his pocket as he knocked on the door, Gohan held his breath in anticipation. His Mother had sent him to a real high school so that he could receive the proper secondary education credentials before going off to college, but that wasn't Gohan's reason for wanting to go to school. From his time spent watching TV shows on his laptop (also given to him by Bulma), Gohan knew that his life wasn't what most would call normal. He lacked any real friends his age, no one to 'hang out' with, or go to parties with. The closest person he had to being his own friend, without being associated primarily with his Father, was Piccolo.

He needed to branch out, to have his own stories to tell. And most of all, he needed to get away from the ever-constant setting of Mount Paozu. Studying and training day after day was interesting for only so long before his mind began to wander. And from his binging of various TV shows while pretending to study (because, yes, he still IS a teenager), Gohan could only feel envy for a life he didn't have. One that he wanted to have.

It was only as he entered the classroom that Gohan began to realise that he may be in over his head. The room was huge, set up as a lecture theatre with row upon row of students all looking directly at him. Clearing his throat nervously, Gohan turned to the teacher.

"Um, hi. I'm Gohan? I'm new here." _Real smooth, Gohan._

The professor smiled widely as his eyes perked in recognition. "Ah yes, of course!" Turning to face the class, the teacher continued. "This young man here is Gohan. He's just transferred, so be nice to him. He also scored very high on the entrance exams, so you could all learn a lot from him." 

Gohan cringed as he heard mutterings of him being a 'nerd' come from the class. He knew enough about social dynamics that being a nerd was not a good thing.

"If you'll just take a seat up the back there, Mr. Son." The teacher gestured as he turned back to the white board. "Erasa, could you raise your hand?"

In response, a short haired blonde waved excitedly from the back row. Taking it as a cue to move, Gohan made his way through the aisle, trying not to draw any more attention to himself as he went. As he took his seat, he awkwardly shot the blonde girl next to him a grin.

"Hey, Gohan right? I'm Erasa. Nice to meet ya!"

"Umm, hey. Nice to meet you too" Gohan replied as he bit his lip. Erasa's enthusiasm was practically pouring out of her as she greeted him. _'I want two of whatever the hell she's on.'_

Erasa had continued to talk, not even bothering to see if Gohan was listening. "-so nice to have a new kid here! It gets so boring listening to the teachers drone on day after day. It's good to have a new face once and a while. Oh, by the way, this is Videl, and that's Sharpner over on her other side."

Sitting on the other side of Erasa was a raven haired girl, who nodded to him before going back to listening to what the teacher was saying. The blonde-haired male next to her, apparently named Sharpner, had his head down as he attempted to discretely tape away on his phone.

Once again, Erasa demanded his attention as she continued to chat away for the next several minutes. She ever so slightly leant over towards him as she talked, blinking every few seconds. Contrary to what most people thought, Gohan wasn't a complete idiot. He knew that she was flirting with him. And Erasa was a very attractive girl. A beautiful face highlighted with perfect levels of make-up, accompanied by a toned body with the right amount of curves made for a very good looking individual. Yet Gohan felt nothing.

' _Well, guess that settles it then.'_

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

As she listened to the teacher drone on about what was to be expected from his class this year, Videl couldn't help but take notice in Erasa's conversation with the new kid. Well, to call it a conversation would be a stretch, as the new kid (Gonad? Gohan?) looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there right now.

Did he not realise that Erasa was really showing interest in him? _'Maybe he just wants to be able to listen to the teacher without seeming rude.'_

Videl subtly assessed the new kid from her spot. If she was being honest, she could see why Erasa was taking such an interest. The guy was really good looking, having a chiselled jawline accompanied with deep black eyes. _'He dresses like a bit of a hipster, I guess.'_ The guy was wearing a button-up shirt, with jeans rolled partway up his calves. In Videl's opinion, he dressed better than half the guys in their class.

"-Videl? Earth to Videl?" Erasa waved a hand in front of her face, startling her out of her thoughts. Videl tried to act unbothered, but by the look on the blonde's face, she knew she'd been caught ogling the new kid. To Videl's relief, the man in question had gone back to listening to what the teacher was saying.

"I was asking what your plans were after school today?"

Videl blushed as she muttered back an answer. She really needed to pick up her act.

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan only half listened to what the teacher was saying, instead choosing to eavesdrop on what Erasa and the other girl were talking about. Looking past the two girls, Gohan focused on the man with long blonde hair. Sharpner, apparently. Judging by his physique, the man worked out at the very least. Gohan could appreciate the time it took to get a body as nice as what Sharpner had.

"Seriously, Sharp? Can you just try and keep it in your pants for one class and not go on Tinder?!"

Tinder? The name was familiar to Gohan from when Bulma had been explaining the apps he could get on his phone. The woman had winked cheekily at him as she jokingly suggested he could get a girlfriend on it. Gohan had immediately written the dating app off as something he wouldn't be interested in. _'So people just go on this thing during the day? Seems a bit weird.'_

Sharpner just chuckled as he put his phone face down on his desk. "Hey, there's never a bad time to be on the lookout. Am I right, man?" With a jolt, Gohan realised that Sharpner was looking at him, obviously looking for backup.

The half-Saiyan laughed nervously in response, trying to appear as calm and relaxed as the blonde. "I feel ya dude." Sharpner grinned at Gohan's approval, reaching over the two girls to hold his fist out.

"You seem like a cool guy" the blonde continued as he bumped his fist to Gohan's. "I'm Sharpner."

"Gohan." Good to know that Gohan didn't completely screw up the first real interaction he'd had with a guy his age. Sharpner went back to his phone, tapping away as the two girls scoffed and returned to talking to one another. Discretely glancing over at the other man, Gohan could see that Sharpner was no longer on the dating site, and was instead playing some sort of game.

"So, Gohan?" The half-Saiyan's attention was drawn to Erasa once again, as the blonde turned to face him. "Where abouts are you from?" The other girl, whose name Gohan had already forgotten, was now also paying attention.

"Well I've been home-schooled my entire life, because I live out in Mt. Paozu. But I'm staying with family out in West City at the moment." Gohan had made the decision earlier that it would be too complicated to explain how he was able to make the commute every day from Mt. Paozu to Satan City, so as far as everyone else was aware, he was staying with the Briefs.

Erasa's eyes widened comically. "Oh, wow! That's ages away. No wonder you're staying with other people during the week." The ring of a bell jolted them all out of their conversation, realising that home room was over. As the students around him began to get up and wander out the door, Gohan pulled out his map of the school, trying to determine where his locker was located.

"Looking for your locker?" Gohan turned to find the raven haired girl shuffling past behind his chair. Noticing that Erasa and Sharpner had already begun to walk towards the door, Gohan returned his attention back to the girl.

"Ah, yeah, actually. Apparently I'm B324."

The girl gave a shy smile in response. "Just come with me. I'm B348, so we'll go past yours on the way to mine." Sighing in relief, Gohan nodded and gathered his belongings. Following the girl out of the room, he saw the two blondes begin to walk in the opposite direction to them down the corridor. Both Sharpner and Erasa turned to wave, which he returned before stopping abruptly. _'Idiot. They were waving to their friend, not you.'_

Falling into a steady pace alongside the girl, Gohan decided to acknowledge the elephant in the room. "Um, sorry, but I forgot your name. Erasa was saying everything at once and it kind of got lost in the moment."

The girl laughed, but eyed him with a strange look in her eyes. "She tends to do that. I'm Videl. Videl Satan." Gohan noticed the hesitation in her voice as she told him her name.

Wait.

"Is that Satan as in, you know? Mr. Satan? Satan City?"

Videl almost looked resigned as she nodded. "Yeah, that's me. Mr. Satan's my father." The way in which she confirmed his question seemed more like an admission of guilt. _'I suppose I would be sad too, if I had that oaf as my dad.'_

"Oh, that's cool." Gohan tried to keep his voice as neutral as possible, so as to not let his disdain show. It evidently worked, as Videl almost seemed to brighten up at his lukewarm response. She suddenly stopped, pointing to the locker near them, which Gohan could see to be B324.

"Here we are. What do you have next, by the way?"

Gohan looked down at his timetable before replying. "AP biology, in room T16. You?"

Videl's mouth formed a small 'O' as she processed his reply. "Wow, our teacher was right when he said you were smart. I've got calculus now, but I can point you in the direction of your room." Videl hesitated before continuing. "Hey, ah, do you want to join us for lunch? Not me specifically, Erasa and Sharpner too. I just figured that you wouldn't know anyone else is all."

Gohan noticed a slight blush on her cheeks as she waited for him to respond. "Yeah, actually. That would be great. You're right, I haven't met anyone else so far."

"Great! I'll see you then." Without further ado, Videl turned and began to walk away with a shy wave over her shoulder. Gohan smiled to himself as he went to open his locker. _'Maybe it won't be so hard to make friends.'_

It was only as he closed his locker that he realised that Videl had forgotten to give him directions to his class. _'Crapbaskets.'_

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

"So, apparently Gohan's sitting with us?"

Videl looked up from her sandwich as Sharpner let his lunch tray fall onto the table, Erasa a few metres behind him. Finishing her mouthful, Videl looked up at Sharpner.

"Yeah, he is. Problem?"

The blonde held up his hands in surrender as he sat down. "No, no. The guy seemed cool, I guess. I'm just wondering is all."

Erasa giggled as she sat down next to Sharpner, opposite from Videl. "I don't mind at all. He's such a cutie. Did you see the way his butt looked in those jeans?!" Videl rolled her eyes at the blonde, but inwardly was agreeing with her. In all honesty, Videl had found the new kid to be extremely good looking. It wasn't until he had stood up after class to walk alongside her that she had realised how tall and muscular Gohan was. His broad shoulders and narrow waist had left Videl more than a little flustered by the end of their conversation, which she hated. She didn't like showing any weakness, especially not to someone she barely knew. _'Get a hold of yourself, Vi. You don't want to turn into Erasa 2.0.'_

"Um, hey guys. Is that offer still open, Videl?"

Looking up, Videl was startled to find the target of her thoughts standing right next to her. _'Kami, he is beautiful.'_ Her alarm must have shown on her face, as Gohan's own face dropped. Videl quickly backtracked, letting a small smile grace her face instead.

"Of course, Gohan!" She shuffled across slightly, allowing the teen enough room to sit next to her. "How was AP biology?"

Gohan grimaced slightly as he placed his tray down before himself. "Eh, it was okay. The teacher was kinda boring."

Sharpner chuckled from across the table. "You got that right. Number one reason I didn't do a science subject this year. The teachers suck." Videl watched Gohan's lips turn up slightly as he listened to Sharpner chat away. He seemed shy, Videl noticed, as he tentatively replied to whatever the blonde asked. _'You would be too if you had never been to school before. He probably doesn't have many friends his age.'_

"So Gohan" Erasa spoke up, distracting Videl from her musings. "What kind of stuff do you do out near Mt. Paozu? There wouldn't be many other people there, right?"

Gohan smiled his cheery smile that sent butterflies through Videl's insides. "Yeah, there's no one else around for about 10 miles in any direction, so it can get pretty lonely. But I like to explore the area, and I play out in the fields with my little brother."

"You look like you work out, though" Sharpner replied between mouthfuls of food.

Videl noticed the teen blush in response to the complement. _'He's probably not used to getting complements about stuff like that.'_

"Um, yeah. I usually train a bit in the evenings, after I'm done with my schoolwork for the day."

Sharpner shot Gohan a smirk. "You should hit up the gym with me sometime. It'd be cool to have a buddy to work out with that's not one of those football idiots." He pointed over to the table where most of the football team sat, laughing and joking around in the most arrogant way possible.

"Yeah, I would like that." Gohan smiled shyly in response to the blonde.

' _Aw, he's so cute when he gets all shy'_ Videl mused internally before scolding herself. _'Stop it Vi. It's his first day here for Kami's sake.'_

"You've been so quiet today, Vi. What's up?" Erasa questioned. Videl became rigid as she realised she had been staring at Gohan. Playing it off a daydreaming, she yawned before turning to face her friend.

"It's nothing, really. Just thinking about stuff."

Erasa nodded, eyes thoughtful. "Still training for the World Martial Arts Tournament?"

Videl nodded in confirmation as her mind wandered again, this time towards her training regime. For a while now, her father had refused to train with her, and so she had been forced to create a program by herself.

"Hey Gohan" Erasa broke the flow of conversation, obviously growing bored with the topic. "What's your last name? I'll add you on Facebook." She paused for a second, doubt showing on her face. "You have a Facebook, right?"

Gohan grinned sheepishly at her. "Um, yeah. I just got one last week actually. My Godmother bought me a phone and everything, and showed me how to use all that kind of stuff." He chuckled as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Oh, my last name's Son, by the way. Gohan Son."

Along with Erasa, Videl to pulled out her phone, quickly searching Gohan on Facebook. Seeing his picture of himself and with someone who was obviously his younger brother, Videl smiled. _'His brother's so cute! They look so similar, too.'_

"I get what you mean about only getting an account recently, man. You've got like eight friends" Sharpner mused from his seat, before his eyes widened. "Wait, wait, wait. You're friends with Yamcha the Bandit?! How the hell do you know him?" Videl looked up in surprise, tapping on the list of Gohan's friends to confirm Sharpner's claim. Sure enough, Yamcha was listed as one of Gohan's eight Facebook friends, right along with…

"And you're friends with Bulma Brief?! This has gotta be some kind of joke, right?"

"Yeah, I'm friends with both of them." Gohan blushed again at the attention. "Bulma is the godmother who got me the phone and stuff. And Yamcha was her ex, and is still good friends with her. Bulma, Yamcha and my Dad were all really close growing up."

' _Well there you go. The weird mountain boy has connections.'_

Erasa gasped in response. "Oh my god! I can't believe you know Bulma Brief! Even Videl hasn't met her."

"Damn, dude! I was gonna joke about your lack of friends, but now I can't. Guess they say quality over quantity, right?" Sharpner grinned at Gohan, before looking down at his phone and groaning. "Shit! I've gotta go talk to Coach Wade about training this year." The blonde stood, but paused as he eyed Gohan up and down. "You wanna come, Gohan? You look like you've got the body type to be a decent boxer."

Videl watched as Gohan balked slightly at the attention, before shaking his head. "Nah, boxing isn't really my thing, sorry. But the receptionist mentioned I should talk to Coach Wade about my gym uniform. I was gonna wait till actual, gym class, but I can go now if you want?"

Sharpner grinned hugely at the other male. "Awesome! I can try and convince you to give boxing a try on the way. See ya Erasa, Videl." He turned to wave at the two girls, Gohan following suit.

"Yeah, good bye. Thanks for letting me sit with you guys today."

Videl smiled at him. "No problem Gohan. We'll see you in gym class, right?"

Gohan nodded as Erasa also waved goodbye, before turning to follow Sharpner out of the cafeteria. It wasn't until Erasa sighed longingly that Videl realised she had too been watching Gohan's waist as he walked out of the room.

"He's perfect" Erasa muttered absentmindedly.

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan lay in bed that night, feeling Goten's ki level out as he fell asleep, while mulling over his first day. As much as he was scared to admit it to himself, his first day of school had been near perfect. From his point of view, he had made three good friends in Sharpner, Videl and Erasa, and had found the school work so easy that he apparently didn't need to worry about his grades any time soon.

Gym class had gone over better than he'd hoped, as he'd managed to conceal his powers without coming off as a weakling, something that the Saiyan in him didn't want to appear as. Coach Wade had even suggested he think about joining a sports team.

His three new friends had been great to hang out with as well. Videl was kind but fierce, not at all like he imagined a child of Hercule Satan to be. With time, Gohan figured she could become a really loyal friend. Erasa was really sweet as well, and her enthusiasm was infectious. _'I only wish she'd stop with the flirting. It's hard to be friends with her when I can practically feel her desire.'_

Finally, Sharpner had turned out be the biggest surprise of them all. One of Gohan's biggest fears leading into today had been how to act around other guys his age. The blonde had turned every stereotype of the popular jock on its head, making Gohan wonder if the TV shows he'd seen with the arrogant, bullying jock were even accurate to begin with. Sharpner had been funny and accommodating towards Gohan, and genuinely seemed like he wanted them to be friends. _'It doesn't hurt that he's easy on the eyes as well'_ Gohan thought before shaking his head. _'Fuck, don't think about your friends like that.'_

If he was being honest, Gohan hadn't thought too much into his sexuality in the past. In his mind, he had never thought of girls in the way he knew he should, but it hadn't seemed to affect him. The lack of contact with anyone his age had desensitised him to the depth of the issue. But now with high school, different expectations would be placed on him. Would his friends expect him to start dating, to get a girlfriend?

Gohan let his mind wander as he listened to Goten's breathes from the next room. His world had suddenly become more complicated in the last 24 hours than it had been since the Cell Games. Granted, Gohan would take struggling with social dynamics over fighting for his life any day, but it was still a challenge. Still, he felt as if for the first time in seven years, he was living again.


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, or any of its characters._

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

The rest of Gohan's first week of school followed similarly to the first day, with the half-Saiyan cakewalking through classes while sitting with Sharpner, Videl and Erasa at lunch. His three new friends made him look forward to every day, eager to learn more about each of them. Sharpner was an avid boxer, and was actually rather smart in class, when he wasn't on his phone. Erasa, who struggled slightly with academics, was eager to apply to beauty school once she had graduated. Yet the biggest surprise to Gohan was Videl, who with every day proved to be more and more unlike her father. Yes, she was a martial arts fanatic, but she also had depth to her personality. Throughout the week, she and Gohan had had many conversations about various topics, ranging from trivial things to more personal matters.

That Friday afternoon, Gohan, Videl, Erasa and Sharpner had chosen to sit under a tree at lunch, the two blondes already arguing about something.

"I don't care, Sharpner! You're coming out tonight whether you like it or not!" Erasa yelled. "It's Friday, and we all need to wind down with a nice drink."

Sharpner scoffed. "You don't care about winding down. You just wanna get with the hot bartender."

Videl laughed as Erasa went red in the face, spluttering in denial. The raven haired girl turned to Gohan as the two blonde's went back to arguing. "Do you wanna come get a drink with us tonight?"

"I'm not sure I'd be allowed." Gohan knew that the legal drinking age for this part of the world was 18, so he and the others (he assumed) were legally allowed to go out drinking. Still, he had never had alcohol in his life, and was absolutely positive his mother would not be on board with the idea.

Sharpner broke away from his conversation with Erasa, having overheard Gohan speaking to Videl. "Wait a second, have you never had alcohol before?" At the shake of Gohan's head, the blonde gasped over-dramatically. "I changed my mind. We're going out tonight, and we're getting Gohan smashed."

"But-"

"You can tell your mum you're staying over at a friend's place" Videl interrupted. "I've got plenty of rooms, and my dad will be out all weekend." At Gohan's look of doubt she pouted. "Please? It would mean so much to us if you came, Gohan."

"I-"

"And we could get you your first kiss, make it a night of firsts" Erasa pleaded as she joined in the conversation.

Gohan looked from Erasa to Videl to Sharpner before sighing. "I'll call my mum."

The three crowed in triumph as Gohan pulled out his phone, dialling home.

" _Hello?_ " Chi-Chi's voice sounded into his ear.

"Hey Mum, its Gohan."

" _Gohan? What're you doing calling during school hours. Is everything alright?_ "

"No, no. Nothing's wrong. It's lunch time. I was just calling to ask if I'm allowed to stay over at a friend's house tonight?" He watched as Videl waved her arms in the air, mouthing more words to him. "And maybe Saturday night?"

Chi-Chi was silent for a moment before replying. " _And what just are you planning to be doing at this friend's house?_ "

"Just studying, Mum. We've got a group paper due Monday so I need to collaborate with some people." Gohan felt the lie roll of his tongue easily.

" _If it's just studying, I guess that's okay. I trust you to be responsible, Gohan. And try to come home on Saturday if you can._ "

"I'll try, Mum. Thanks so much. I love you."

" _I love you too, sweetie. See you soon._ "

Gohan sighed as he hung up the phone, rubbing his forehead as he turned to face his friends. "You guys are such a bad influence. I'm not even here for a week and you've already corrupted me."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan knew he should've been regretting his decision the moment he saw Sharpner arrive at Videl's house with a six-pack of beer.

"Aren't we going to a bar to drink?" He asked as he stepped aside to let Sharpner through the door.

The blonde looked at Gohan for a moment, before laughing and patting him on the back. "Oh, you cute little boy. This is for Pres here."

"Pres?"

"We drink for a bit here before going out to the bar. That way we get in the mood before we get there, and we save a little money on drinks that are gonna be more expensive at the Devil's Kitchen."

"Oh. That's smart actually. Nice hair, by the way." Gohan immediately winced after complimenting Sharpner's look. ' _Kami, that sounded so creepy._ ' The man had arrived in a button-up shirt and chinos, very similar in style to what Gohan was currently wearing. In addition, Sharpner had tied his long blonde hair into a bun behind his head, adding to the overall smartness of the outfit.

Fortunately, Sharpner did not appear bothered at all by Gohan's comment, instead smiling at the half-Saiyan. "Yeah, I figured it was time to rock the man-bun. Where'd you get your clothes from?"

"Videl and I went shopping after school while you and Erasa went home." The shopping trip to get supplies for Gohan's stay had actually been rather fun, with the two black haired teenagers had chatted away about unimportant things, just relaxing in each other's company.

"Just be glad Erasa wasn't there. You guys would still be buying clothes now if she'd come along." Gohan winced at the thought Sharpner suggested. "Speaking of, is Erasa here yet?"

Gohan pointed at the roof with his finger. "Yeah, she and Videl are putting on make-up upstairs." Sharpner nodded as they walked down the hallway into the kitchen. The blonde took two beers from the pack, before putting the other four in the fridge.

"Here ya go." He turned to open the drawers below him after handing the beer off to Gohan. "These aren't twist top, so gimme a sec to…" The words died on Sharpner's lips as Gohan twisted off the lid with ease. "Dude! How did you do that without wrecking your hands?"

' _Way to hide your strength, idiot'_ Gohan internally berated himself as he feigned pain.

"Shit, yeah that wasn't a good idea." The half-Saiyan grabbed his hand to hide the unmarked skin as he lied.

Sharpner chuckled in reply as he pried his own cap off with the bottle opener. "Maybe don't do that at 'Devils', yeah?" Gohan nodded as they fell into a companionable silence for a moment. He took a sip of his beer before wincing in disgust.

"Kami, this tastes fucking disgusting."

Sharpner grinned in response as he took a swig of his own beverage. "They're an acquired taste, that's for sure. Don't worry, you'll get used to it over time." More silence. "So, you know that Erasa's into you, right?"

Gohan paled at Sharpner's abrupt comment. "Um, yeah. I kinda figured that one out on my own."

"So why don't you go for it?"

 _Shit_. There was no right way out of this. Say yes to Sharpner and he would get the idea that Gohan would be willing to date Erasa. Say no and the blonde might think he was implying he didn't think Erasa was attractive. Truth to be told, Gohan could tell that Erasa was a pretty girl. And besides, she obviously wasn't too hung up in his if she was already talking about the bartender at the Devil's Kitchen.

Luckily, he was saved by Videl and Erasa emerging from the hallway. The two girls were dressed up in nice clothes, Videl opting for jeans and boots while Erasa wore a dress with heels.

Sharpner wolf whistled from his spot leaning up against the island bench. "Looking very nice ladies. Care for a beer?"

Videl grinned, happily opening the fridge to grab one of Sharpner's beers while Erasa shook her head. "No thanks, Sharpie. I brought my own drinks so I wouldn't have to taste any of that poor excuse of a drink." Sharpner scoffed as the girl reached into the fridge to grab a brightly coloured drink in a glass bottle.

"So Gohan, how's your first drink?" Videl asked as she leaned next to Sharpner against the bench.

Wincing, Gohan replied. "It tastes like crap, actually."

"Yeah, that's beer for you. It'll get better as you keep drinking, promise."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

The beer did not get better.

After finishing his third drink, Gohan could safely say that it still was the worst drink he'd ever had. The four of them had gathered into an Uber, with Erasa already acting tipsy, and headed off to the Devil's Kitchen. Gohan had sat wedged in between a giggling Erasa and an amused Videl, with Sharpner sitting up front with the driver, for the ten-minute drive to their destination.

Climbing out of the vehicle, Gohan supported Erasa as she stumbled behind him. Videl led the way as she opened the door to the Devil's Kitchen. Inside, people bustled about, moving from table to table carrying drinks and cheering. The infectious happiness in the air seeped over Gohan, as he allowed himself to wallow in the feeling. This was it. The first time he would be able to say he'd hung out with friends.

"Wow, its busy as hell" Sharpner remarked as he followed behind them into the bar. "We should find a table ASAP."

"No, not yet Sharpie!" Erasa wailed. "Drinks first. Besides, I'm gonna go chat to Sev for a bit." She stumbled away from the group, making her way over to the bar.

Gohan looked at Sharpner and Videl in question. "Who's Sev?"

"The hot bartender she likes." Videl smirked as she went to follow the girl. "You boys find us a table. I'll look after Erasa and make sure she gets drinks for all of us."

Sharpner looked at Gohan and shrugged, before turning to weave through the tables. It wasn't long before they found a secluded table booth in the corner of the room, the girls breaking away from the bar with drinks in each hand.

"One vodka lemonade each for us" Videl announced as she placed the drinks down on the table. "And a beer each for the boys." Gohan groaned as a large glass of the brown liquid was placed down in front of him. The mix of spirits and soft drink the girls had bought seemed much more inviting.

Erasa giggled. "Sev got us discounts. He is sooo hot." The blonde continued to babble to Sharpner about the brilliant blue of the bartender's eyes as Videl turned to face Gohan.

"So I was thinking that tomorrow we could all just relax at mine, hop in the pool or whatever. Does that work for you?"

The half-Saiyan nodded in confirmation as he sipped at his beer. "Yeah, that sounds fine. My mum said she'd prefer if I could get home tomorrow instead of staying over for the night. I can stay if you had something planned though?"

"No, not much really. I just figured the four of us would relax, have a nice dinner or something. You're more than fine to head home if you need to."

The conversation between the four turned to more trivial matters as they sipped away at their drinks. As he finished his, Gohan got up to head to the bar. "Next round is on me if anyone wants another drink."

Sharpner held up his own empty drink in a sign that he wanted another. Videl also nodded, before turning to look at Erasa. "I think E doesn't need another though. She's had a bit much already."

"Whad're ya talkin' about? I'm fiiine" Erasa slurred as she stared heatedly at Videl. The raven haired girl placated her, before turning to shake her head 'no' at Gohan. Laughing, the half-Saiyan turned to trot towards the bar. The warm fuzz of the alcohol dimmed his senses as he felt himself waver slightly. ' _So this is what is feels like to be buzzed._ '

As the line to the bar shortened, Gohan lent on the edge, picking at the rubber mat laid out over the counter. Eventually, the bartender turned to face him, allowing Gohan to get a good look at his face.

"Well, this is definitely a surprise. Never figured you for a drinker, Gohan."

Android Seventeen smirked at him from behind the bar, tucking a loose strand of black hair behind his ear. In the seven years that had passed since the android awakening, Gohan was shocked to realise that the android now looked similar in age to himself. He was dressed in jeans and a simple collared shirt, rolled up to just under his elbows. The android also had his long dark hair tied back into a bun, allowing the various piercings on his ears to be seen. In addition, the rolled up sleaves of his shirt revealed tattoos on his right arm.

Gohan stuttered out a reply. "W-what're you doing here?"

"I work here, genius. That's why I'm on this side of the counter, about to serve you a drink. I thought you were the smart one, man."

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Gohan. "You're Sev, aren't you? My friend Erasa mentioned you."

Seventeen at least looked surprised at that. "You're here with Erasa? She's a nice girl, but not someone I expected to be hanging around with you."

The half-Saiyan immediately felt the need to be defensive. "There's a lot you don't know about me, android." In response, Seventeen held his arms up in surrender.

"Hey, calm down dude. I'm not trying to pick a fight here. What can I get you, anyway?"

Gohan turned, noticing that the line behind him had grown. "Ah, three beers thanks."

Seventeen looked at him blankly. "Type?"

 _Fuck_. Of course he would need to specify a type of beer. Not wanting to appear out if his depth in front of the android, Gohan glanced towards the taps, before deciding to go out on a limb.

"Surprise me."

The android's eyes narrowed as he grabbed three glasses, pouring beer from a tap into each of them. "We should have a talk later to clear the air. My shift finishes at 12, so try and hang around for at least that long, yeah?"

"Um, okay. Sure." Grabbing the three drinks and heading back towards his table, Gohan berated himself. Why did he have to try to sound cool? Seventeen was probably back there laughing to himself at how much of a dork Gohan was. ' _Or even worse, he thinks I was flirting with him._ '

"Took you long enough dude" Sharpner scoffed as he grabbed his drink from Gohan, immediately taking a sip. "We thought you were pulling out the moves on the bartender."

"W-what?!" Gohan stuttered. ' _Oh Kami, was it that obvious?_ '

Videl laughed, before pointing to the bar. "You know, the hot blonde girl." Gohan looked over to see a blonde woman with glasses and numerous face piercings serving drinks next to Seventeen. ' _Relax Gohan. They wouldn't have been able to see who you were talking to with that crowd._ '

The half-Saiyan allowed himself to chuckle before replying. "Nah, the line was just really long. And I also apparently know the bartender Erasa likes. We… met once a few years ago." Gohan was in fact not lying, as just after the Cell Games, Eighteen had dragged her brother along to one of Bulma's parties during the early stages of her and Krillin's relationship. Gohan did not interact much with Seventeen that night, but clearly remembered when the android had almost provoked Vegeta into blowing up the entire building. He was not invited back again afterwards, nor did Eighteen bring him with her to other events.

"Oh so you know Sev then?" Videl asked. "Erasa's had a little crush on him for a while now, but we were never able to work out if he was interested or just playing around with the whole flirting thing." Gohan looked over to see Erasa sleeping in the corner, unable to contribute to Videl's statement. ' _She and Seventeen would be good for one another_ ' Gohan found himself thinking almost forlornly.

"His shift ends at midnight, so you guys don't mind if I have a quick chat with after, do you?"

Sharpner shook his head. "No problem at all man. You sure you weren't flirting with the hot bartender?"

"No, sorry to burst your bubble" Gohan laughed.

"Damn G, you really are innocent."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

By the time midnight arrived, Gohan was positive he had built up the impending conversation with Seventeen in his mind to be a bigger deal than it actually was. He had played out almost every possible scenario in his head, including his fight strategy should they come to blows. It had become such a looming task that by the end of the night, event Videl and Sharpner could tell he was distracted. They had politely dismissed themselves at 11:50 pm (along with a groggy Erasa), telling Gohan that they would be at the diner down the street when he was done talking to Seventeen.

The final ten minutes turned Gohan into a mass of indecision, as he fought the urge to wimp out and follow his friends to the diner. ' _Don't be an idiot, Gohan. Seventeen probably hasn't even thought twice about this conversation. Just man up and get it over with._ '

Just as Gohan checked his phone once again for the time, Seventeen materialised beside him, standing over the half-Saiyan. "Hey, can we walk for a bit? I'm kinda sick of this place after working a six hour shift here."

Gohan jumped slightly in surprise, before nodding and following the android out of the bar. It was only as he trailed behind the other man that Gohan realised just how much taller he was. ' _It's so weird that this tiny man is one of the dreaded androids we feared so much for so long._ '

They walked in silence for an entire block before Seventeen spoke. "You don't need to worry about me flying of the handle and hurting someone, okay? I've built a life for me here, I'm not gonna throw it all away."

Okay, so no punching each other then. "I wasn't thinking that."

"Yes you were" Seventeen deadpanned.

Gohan winced. ' _Fine, maybe I was._ ' Deciding to move away from the subject, he spoke again to the android. "How long have you been living in Satan City?"

"Only about two years" Seventeen replied. "I figured I have about another five to six left here before the whole immortality thing becomes an issue and I have to move. I think I'm gonna move to North City next, apparently they have a good donut shop."

"Um, okay."

The two continued to walk in silence as they wandered across a bridge, overlooking a larger river. The stars shone in the sky above them as Seventeen stopped to lean over the edge of bridge. Gohan stared at his sharp features, his face looking almost sad as he stared up at the sky.

"Do you ever feel that life is passing you by, Gohan?"

Gohan blinked ' _Wow, straight into the deep questions_.' If the half-Saiyan was being honest with himself, he did fell that. The seven years since the Cell Games had rushed past him in the blink of an eye, the only marker of the time being Goten's growth. Looking back on the time, Gohan realised with regret that the only accomplishments he had to show for that time period were textbooks and test results. At the time it hadn't seemed so bad, but now Gohan reflected on it as seven wasted years that he would never get back, with the only shining lights in that time being from Goten and Chi-Chi.

Deciding to be honest, Gohan voiced his thoughts. "Yeah, actually. I do feel that."

Seventeen sighed as he continued to stare at the sky above him. "I would kill for that feeling. I know it's meant to be a bad thing, realising that you've wasted years of your life, but when you're like me you could afford to do that." He turned to face Gohan, the skin above his eyebrows crinkling. "I'm destined to die with this planet. I can never settle down with a family, grow old and die. My sister is so lucky that she not only found someone who understands our curse, but loves her in spite of it. As annoying as Krillin is, he's willing to stand by Eighteen as he grows old and she doesn't."

"I have no one. My sister doesn't need me now that she has her new family. And no matter how many friends I make in the life I live now, it's only a matter of time before I have to move on, leave them without an explanation." Seventeen laughed to himself as he turned away from Gohan. "Shit, I can't believe I'm telling you this. I barely know you."

Realising his silence could be interpreted as rudeness, Gohan spoke as gently as he could. "I have no idea what that would feel like, to watch everyone you care about grow old as you're stuck in time at one point. I guess I never thought about how difficult immortality could be."

Seventeen smiled sadly as he kicked a rock with his foot. "You know Eighteen and I should be almost forty by now? Instead I can only guess how old I am. I've been using twenty-one for a while now."

"Hey, at least you don't have to eternally relive high school."

The android laughed at Gohan's quip. "Yeah, I guess that's a plus. Look, Gohan. I know this could be crossing a line, and if you don't want to do this then say no by all means. It's just that whenever I see Eighteen she always seems so happy, and I think that's because she's surrounded by people that get her." Gohan stared as Seventeen rubbed at his forehead. "I guess what I'm asking is if you wanted to hang out sometime. It would be nice to not have to lie to every single person I meet."

All of Gohan's doubt about the android melted away as he stared into the man's bright blue eyes, not even realising the words of confirmation were already rolling off his tongue. "Of course, Seventeen. None of my friends at high school know about the real me, so I could use someone in my corner who gets me as well."

The android's blue eyes visibly shone with happiness as he smiled the first real smile Gohan had ever seen on that face.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hey everyone, I'm back! So sorry for the long break between updates, I've been really struggling to work out the future of this fic, as far as its plot and the romantic pairing. As you'll see with this chapter, I kinda make a decision as far as an initial pairing, although it's not necessarily endgame. This fic is about Gohan exploring himself, after all. This chapter is a bit longer than the others, and hopefully the wait for the next chapter won't be as long._

 _As one (anonymous) reviewer was so kind to bring up, this is a slashfic, meaning that there is gonna be guy-on-guy action._

 _Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, or any of its characters._

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Kami, economics was boring.

Gohan leaned back in his chair as his economics teacher droned on about the equity of income distribution, feeling as if his life force was being drained out of him. Next to the half-Saiyan, Sharpner sat with his phone hidden under his desk, tapping away as he messaged someone. And for the first time since starting school, Gohan was seriously considering doing the same.

He supposed that the rush of highs he had experienced over the weekend had left his unprepared for the fall back to reality come Monday. After their night out on Friday, Gohan had spent Saturday with his new friends as they relaxed and mucked about at Videl's mansion of a house. He had truly enjoyed the time spent with all three of them, and had found himself sad as he had flown back home that night. The following day had been spent finishing homework and playing with Goten, which in of itself had been relatively fun.

Deciding that he was a weak person, Gohan caved and took his phone out of his pocket, immediately hiding it under his desk just as Sharpner had done. Opening Facebook, he cleared any new notifications he had before scrolling through his news feed. He quickly stumbled upon a picture that had been posted by android Seventeen, depicting him and an unknown girl grinning together in what appeared to be a nightclub of some sorts. ' _Kami, he's good looking_ ' Gohan mused before inwardly cursing himself, liking the post before scrolling on. He had apparently developed a bad habit of looking at his male friends in the wrong way. ' _Maybe long hair is what does it for me._ ' The half-Saiyan glanced over at Sharpner, who once again was flicking through Tinder.

When the bell finally rang to signal the end of the class, Gohan all but flew out of his chair, gathering his belongings quickly as Sharpner meandered about. The blonde looked at Gohan, laughing at his impatience. "Dude, lunch will still be there if we walk to the cafeteria."

"But I'm hungry!" Gohan blushed as he replied. He was in fact starving, and with despair the half-Saiyan acknowledged that he would not be able to eat his usual amount. One downside of living a regular life was that his Saiyan appetite had to be restrained, as it would turn too many heads. Bulma was currently working on a high energy food source for him to consume, but for now he had to struggle through the day on minimal energy.

"So" Sharpner spoke as they walked towards their lockers. "What do you think about having our first gym session together after school?"

Gohan scratched the back of his neck as he thought. "I'm actually busy today, sorry. I said I'd get back to Bulma's as soon as possible today to help her with a project. She said she needed an extra pair of hands." It wasn't that he didn't want to go to the gym with Sharpner. He actually thought it would be a good bonding experience for them. But until Bulma had finished the power dampening device she was working on in addition to the high energy food source, the half-Saiyan didn't dare do any voluntary exercise in public, for fear he would expose his abilities.

"Nah that's cool man. We'll go another time."

"Definitely" Gohan grinned as he reached his locker. He was glad that Sharpner had taken a chance with him, instead of immediately putting a wall up. It was the easy going friendship they had formed that kept Gohan happiest when he went home every night, just being able to have confidence that the blonde would have his back.

After put his books away, he rejoined Sharpner as they walked down the hall to the blonde's own locker. As they walked, Gohan noticed three football players pushing around a smaller boy, shoving him against the lockers behind him. Without thinking, Gohan broke away from the blonde, and ignoring his friend's confused look, made his way over to the bullies.

"Hey, I think that's enough" he firmly stated as he grasped the nearest guy by the shoulder, turning him around to face him. "You don't need to get violent, so just calm down and move on."

The football player scoffed, his overly muscled body rippling as he shoved Gohan. "Just who the hell are you anyway?" When Gohan didn't budge from the shove, the man attempted to push him a second time. As the half-Saiyan levelled a stony glare in return, the brown haired jock balked slightly, scoffing as he held up his hands in a sing of peace.

"Relax man. We were just playing around." The jock signalled for his friends to stand down, before turning to walk away with a faux smile. "See ya 'round, kid."

Gohan immediately bent down to help the smaller teen pick up the books he'd dropped. "Are you okay?" The kid stuttered out an affirmative response, before scurrying away with his belongings. Gohan turned back to Sharpner, whose mouth was slightly agape in astonishment.

"Dude! Where the fuck did that come from? You were scary as hell just then."

Gohan grunted, still in a bad mood. "I just don't like bullies."

"Well you better be ready to get acquainted with them. That was Jay Sampson. He's not gonna let you embarrassing him like that go for long." Sharpner said the footballer's name as if it were something Gohan should be fearful of.

"Well then, he better bring his A game with him next time."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

"I'm just saying you should think about it, Vi." Erasa sipped at her milkshake as she pleaded with her friend. "You always have a free house, and a party would be so amazing!"

Videl sighed as she contemplated the blonde's suggestion. "I don't know Erasa. I don't think having a party at mine would be a good idea. Besides, who would I even invite?"

"Are you kidding me?" The blonde laughed in disbelief. "Everyone at this school would flock to be able to come to party hosted by you."

"Yeah, but I don't really like many of those people. I have more fun when it's just you, me and Sharp. Oh, and Gohan of course." The black-haired man had quickly worked his way into their friendship group, proving to be relatable to each of them in a different way. To Sharpner, Gohan became a guy friend that he could 'bro out with', as he liked to call it. Erasa found someone to chat with while Videl and Sharpner trained for their respective sports. And Videl found herself surprised at the levels of depth her own conversations with the teen, the two of them being able to talk about topics their other friends didn't understand.

Erasa leant back in her chair, looking around at the local café they were in. "Yeah, Gohan's a real charmer, isn't he? Not hard on the eyes either."

That had also not been lost on Videl. More than once since they'd met, she had found herself getting a little lost in the Gohan's dark eyes. Shaking the thought out of her head, Videl change the topic to their homework from that day

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

"Get ready to love me, Gohan!"

Gohan looked up from his spot on the floor in Trunks' room, a toy in each hand as he eyed Bulma at the doorway. Beside him, Trunks cursed his mother for interrupting their game. Seven years older since the fight with Cell, Bulma Brief was as beautiful as ever, old age showing no signs of slowing her down. Dressed in dirty overalls and protective goggles, Bulma beamed at Gohan as she waved a small device through the air. Upon further inspection, Gohan realised it was a watch, Capsule Corp. logo appearing distinct from the metallic surface.

"Um, but I don't need a watch?"

Bulma rolled her eyes at Gohan before walking into the room to sit down with the two half-Saiyans. "Honestly, I don't know if it's a Saiyan thing or a guy thing that makes you so smart yet so dumb. It's a ki suppressor, silly! With this baby on, you should be able to power yourself down to a state similar to your friends."

Oh, now he got it. "That's great Bulma! Thanks, this is awesome."

"Well don't thank me yet. You'll still be a fair bit stronger and faster than everyone else, but you can just pass it off as the result of living in the mountains your whole life. Besides, girls love a strong, handsome boy." Bulma winked at Gohan jokingly as the half-Saiyan blushed and laughed nervously.

"Yeah, I should really be going now. Mom will really crack it at me if I'm out late again."

The blue-haired genius grinned knowingly. "Again? And what've you been getting up to on your late nights out, mister?"

"Oh fu-fudge off Bulma, nothing like that. Some friends of mine have just been showing me good places to go to." Gohan blanched at almost swearing in front of Trunks. Growing up, Bulma's house had always been the save haven for swearing or letting off steam, as Gohan had heard nearly every bad word known to man escape Bulma's lips while on Namek. After their adventure to the alien world, a bond had been formed between them, where Gohan could look up to Bulma as more of an older sister than as a parental figure.

Trunks looked at him with a deadpan expression. "You can say 'fuck', Gohan. I'm not a baby."

Gohan gaped as Bulma's entire face went red with rage. "Trunks! Where did you hear that word?!"

"Dad says it whenever one of the training machines gets a hit off on him." Seeing his mother's face grow even angrier, the child continued. "Oh, and that one time you stuck your finger in the toaster."

Bulma blanched at that, not really sure what to say. "Oh, um, well don't say it anymore, okay? And especially not in front of Goten, he's younger than you and will repeat it all the time. If I hear from Chi-Chi that Goten learnt bad words off you, you'll be grounded for life!"

Trunks just rolled his eyes in a near perfect impression of Vegeta. "Fine, see ya later Gohan." Fist bumping Gohan quickly, the child got up and walked out of his room and into the kitchen, no doubt in search of something to eat.

"I swear that boy becomes more and more like his father everyday" Bulma sighed in resignation. "At least Goten gets to take after Goku."

After being shows how to work his ki suppressor, Gohan bid farewell to Bulma, the two parting ways in the hallway as Bulma returned to her workshop. On his way out, the half-Saiyan walked past the gravity room, quickly glancing in the window to see if Vegeta was inside.

"Come for a rematch boy?" Gohan startled as he turned around to see Vegeta standing in the hallway, hands planted firmly on his hips.

Swallowing down the urge to cower in front of the Saiyan prince, Gohan scoffed as he took a step towards the other man. "Nah, I was just coming by to see Trunks and grab something off Bulma. But if you're in such a hurry to lose, old man, then I'll be back this weekend."

Gohan had learnt long ago that the only way to earn respect from Vegeta was to stand up for yourself. Even if half of his posturing was bullcrap, he could tell that the older man held in him higher regard for having the guts fight back, even if just verbally. In an actual fight, Vegeta would have the upper hand unless Gohan transformed into an ascended Saiyan, something which he rarely did to allow Vegeta to save face. Besides, Gohan was almost positive that Vegeta took a sick thrill out of seeing the son of Goku, the world's biggest softie, be 'corrupted' by the prince's influence. While it was true that Gohan had been influenced by Vegeta and Piccolo's harsh lifestyles over the years, he still respected his father for everything he was and what he did for the world.

Vegeta smirked in response to Gohan's trash talk. "Oh, we'll see about that. I doubt you'll be a match for me if you're too busy worrying about blending in with that fucking suppressor." At Gohan's look of surprise, Vegeta elaborated. "I do, on occasion, listen to the woman when she yabbers on at dinner."

Gohan laughed at Vegeta's attempted nonchalance. Forget Goku, it was the Saiyan prince who was the softie.

"If you're sure then, I'll leave the ki suppressor on when we fight. Maybe then you'll finally be able to get a few hits in, Veggie." Seeing the Saiyan warrior begin to boil with rage, Gohan took that as his cue to leave, yelling goodbye as he dashed out the door and took to the skies.

Once he was far enough out of Satan city, Gohan took the ki suppressor out of his pocket and slapped it on his wrist. ' _Okay, so if I'm following Bulma's instructions correctly, all I need to do is turn the dial down to the first marker, and press the red butto-oooon!_ ' Gohan lurched as he suddenly dropped out of the sky, plummeting down the Earth's surface. Just before he hit the ground, the Saiyan deactivated the suppressor, allowing the impact to not hurt as much.

The teen groaned as he rolled out of the miniature ditch he had created in the ground. "Well, fuck." While he wasn't severely hurt, the fall had rivalled some of the collisions he'd had with some of the mountain's on Namek, especially the one Recoome had knocked him into. ' _To be fair though, that one was more of a plateau._ ' Brushing himself off, Gohan groaned in pain as he felt the effects of his fall. ' _Definitely not a good idea to turn the damn thing on while flying, Gohan._ ' Definitely warranting a trip to Dende's, Gohan sighed. He was going to be in so much shit.

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

In the end Gohan was right, as Chi-Chi had not been happy with how late he was. Deciding to not tell her about the fall and subsequent injuries, Gohan played it off as the result of Bulma needing to finish the suppressor, before proudly showing it off to his mother. That had calmed her down a bit, although Gohan could still hear her muttering something about 'delinquents' as she shooed him off to tuck Goten in.

Knocking on his brother's door, Gohan waited for an answer before entering. Inside, Goten was lying under his covers, his eyes already drooping as he struggled to stay awake for his brother.

"Hey big brother. Mom wanted me to go to bed, but I stayed awake for you so you could say goodnight and tuck me in. Have you been playing with Trunks today?"

Gohan smiled at his younger brother. "Yeah, buddy. Aunty Bulma was making me something, so I played with him while I was waiting. What did you get up to today?"

Goten grinned and chattered away about his day, slowly becoming more and more tired as he continued to speak. After he finally drifted off, Gohan gave a light kiss to his forehead, and walked down the hall to his room.

Gohan was almost tempted to collapse onto his bed as it were when he entered his room. Fighting against the urge to drift off, the teen took his belongings out of his bag and put them away, before stripping down to his underwear. Looking at himself in the mirror, Gohan's eyes instinctively picked out every scare on his body, mentally adding them to his list of flaws. The half-Saiyan shook his head as he sat down on his bed to take his socks off. He knew that he had a desirable figure, and that genetic from both his parents had granted him an attractive face. But he still saw only the boy who'd been beaten bloody by Nappa, Recoome, Frieza and Cell. He still focused on the scar over his left pectoral, or the small burn mark on his side from one of his prior opponent's ki blasts. His years growing up a social hermit had left him to dwell on all the bad things in his life.

After brushing his teeth and showering, Gohan pulled out his phone as he lay down on his bed. For the third time that day, Gohan mentally debated on downloading the online dating app Sharpner used. ' _He called it Tinder, I think?_ ' Searching it in the app store, Gohan clicked on its description, before hovering over the download button. Before he could make up his mind, however, his phone pinged to alert him of a message.

Gohan felt his heart pick up in pace as he saw Seventeen's name appear on his screen.

 _Hey, you awake? – Seventeen_

Deciding to play the smartass card, Gohan quickly typed back in response.

 _I'm 18 years old, not 80. It's only 10pm. – Gohan_

Before long, Gohan's phone once again pinged to let him know that Seventeen had responded to his message.

 _To be fair, you are Goku's son. The guy probably went to bed while it was still light outside, am I right? – Seventeen_

 _You got me there. What's up? – Gohan_

 _Was just wondering if you wanted to hang out later this week. Drinks and a game of pool sound good? – Seventeen_

Gohan couldn't help but grin as he typed out his reply.

 _Yeah I'm in. – Gohan_

 _Awesome. Friday at Devil's Kitchen? I've got the night off this week. – Seventeen_

 _Sounds great! See you then – Gohan_

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Exactly a week after his first visit to the Devil's Kitchen, Gohan once again entered the bar, which was already in full swing as the sounds of laughter echoed off the walls. Looking around, Gohan took note of faces he had seen last week, obviously Friday night regulars. The Devil's Kitchen seemed to attract all sorts of individuals, ranging from high schoolers like himself to heavily tattooed bikers, and even a group of women looking to be around Bulma's age. Following the directions Seventeen had texted him the previous day, Gohan walked passed the bar and into a back room, where several pool tables were set up. Gohan moved awkwardly to the wall to pull out his phone, after not seeing any sign of the android. However, a hand was placed on his shoulder before he could even send a text off.

"You made it! Good to see you Gohan." Seventeen smirked as he clapped his hand once more on the half-Saiyan's shoulder, before holding it out for a handshake. Gohan smiled as he clasped the android's hand, putting his phone back into his pocket.

"Of course I did. I'm only, like, four minutes late."

Seventeen shook his head ruefully. "Yeah, I guess a part of me was wondering if you were gonna show up at all. Stupid, I know." He beckoned for Gohan to follow him. "C'mon, let's grab a drink and find a table."

To Gohan's surprise, the two of them fell into an easy chatter as they bought their drinks (with discounts, curtesy of Seventeen) and found a pool table. It was only then that Gohan realised he had no idea how to play. Laughing it off when the half-Saiyan admitted this, Seventeen explained the rules to him, before demonstrating the way in which to hold the cue. When it was his turn Gohan carefully lined up the shot, before doing his best imitation of Seventeen's action. To his surprise, the white ball hit another with enough force that sent it flying into the pocket, making a large sound as is only barely missed flying off the table.

"Well, shit. That wasn't half bad" Seventeen applauded. "You should watch the strength of your shot though, you don't wanna break a wall down or something."

Gohan chuckled as he scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah, maybe you're right."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

So apparently Saiyan genetics did not stop Gohan from being a lightweight.

Through the drunken haze he was in, the half-Saiyan wondered if perhaps his state of intoxication was encouraged by the power dampener he wore. If it worked on a cellular level within his body, then surely it would slow down all aspects of his metabolism, including the enzymes used to break down alcohol in his body. ' _Yeah, that's gotta be it_ ' Gohan pondered as he stumbled over to the bar. He made his way to the front of the que, fumbling to pull his wallet out of his pocket as a bartender approached him.

"Heeyy" Gohan slurred as he looked heatedly over at the man behind the counter. "Can I have another one of those shots please?"

The bartender smirked in amusement. "And what kind of shot were you after buddy?"

Shit. ' _Oh nooooo, my brilliant plan foiled again. Quick Gohan, improvise_!'

"Ummmm, I forgot. But I'm pretty sure it had alcohol of some kind in it. How about you get me one of those." Gohan winked over-dramatically as he slammed a $20 note onto the counter. "Actually, get me two please." The bartender shrugged, taking the money and returning with two shot glasses of clear liquid and some change.

"Here ya go buddy. Enjoy."

"No, you enjoy." Gohan winked again, shooting two finger guns at the bartender before taking the shot glasses. ' _Man, I am so smooth_.'

He downed one shot as he went, walking around aimlessly until he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Dude, you got _more_ alcohol?!" Seventeen's eyes were widened, the red hue present on his cheeks showing the amount of alcohol he too had ingested. "I went to take a leak for like, two minutes! And wait, did you get me one?"

Gohan pushed his last shot into Seventeen's hand. "You have this one. I've already had one." The android shrugged before tipping the glass to his mouth. "TEQUILLA!" The half-Saiyan grinned. He'd always wanted to say that.

Putting the glass down on a nearby table, Seventeen winced. "Ugh, that was vodka, you idiot." The android leaned against a wall as he stretched his arms over his head and yawned. "Oh man, I'm so drunk. What do you wanna do now?" He looked up at the half-Saiyan with icy blue eyes, making Gohan realise for the first time just how much taller he was.

"Let's go outside! It's hot in here." Gohan thought briefly before his eyes widened and his smile grew. "Oh my kami, we should go for a fly! I've never been flying while drunk before. Well come to think of it, I don't think I've ever actually been drunk before. But we should still do it. Come on, it would be so much fun!" Without giving the android a chance to reject his offer, Gohan grabbed Seventeen by the hand and pulled him out of the Devil's Kitchen.

The night air was chilly against his skin as the wind blew past them, the two stumbling out of the bar and onto the street. "Dude, I feel like we'll crash if we go flying now" Seventeen replied as he shrugged Gohan's hand off him. "And besides, people will see us if we just fly out of here."

"That's why we've gotta be sneaky about it. We gotta channel our inner Batman." Gohan couldn't help himself anymore, breaking down into a fit of giggles.

Seventeen laughed as well, shaking his head. "Imagine if Dr. Gero could see me now, getting drunk and pretending to be Batman with the son of his worst enemy. The android cupped his hands around his mouth, before tilting his head to the sky and screaming. "FUCK YOU GERO!" A couple of passer-by's flinched in shock as they passed, but the two men just laughed even more, before breaking out into a run towards the nearest alley.

"Okay, let's go!" Gohan channelled his ki underneath him, and attempted to lift off the ground, but was met with a resounding lack of action.

"Ah, are you coming?" Gohan looked up to see Seventeen hovering a couple of feet off the ground, looking down at him quizzically.

"I'm trying." The half-Saiyan tried again, before comically flapping his arms as if they were wings. Suddenly, a thought struck the teen, and he gasped in horror. "Oh my kami Seventeen, I think I'm broken! All the beers and vodkas have broken me!" The android once again broke down into a fit of laughter as Gohan jumped repeatedly on the ground. "Stop laughing, this is not funny! Oh fuck, wait until Vegeta hears that I've lost my powers. He'll kill me." Gohan once again jumped and flapped his arms, before realisation dawned on him.

"Um okay. Please don't laugh again, but the reason I couldn't fly was that I forgot to turn my ki suppressor off." The half-Saiyan took the watch off his arm, and placed it in his pocket as he lifted off the ground. "See, all better."

Seventeen arched an eyebrow as they flew higher. "You can be a real drama queen when you want to be, you know that? Who the fuck do you get that from?"

"My mother." Gohan blushed as he replied.

Gohan allowed the sensation of flying to overtake him, yelling in joy as he flipped in and out of clouds. Beside him, Seventeen laughed as he struck a Superman pose and shot forward. The half-Saiyan grinned as he flew up beside him. "Man, it's so cool having a friend my age who I don't have to hide my powers from. I don't think I know anyone else who I could get drunk and go flying with."

"See, I told you this was a good idea" Seventeen patted Gohan on the shoulder as he replied. "I know for a fact that my sister would be wishing she was here, if she wasn't so domesticated."

The half-Saiyan frowned as he felt the mood sadden. "You really miss her, don't you?"

"She's just changed so much. Before Gero abducted us, we used to get up to all kinds of crap. We were each other's best friends." Seventeen smiled sadly as he rotated to fly with his back facing the ground below them. "We even used to be each other's wingmen. Well I guess she was a wingwoman. Even when we got turned into androids, we still tried to have adventures and stuff. I guess she was just ready to grow up and I wasn't."

Gohan frowned again, not liking the depressing turn the conversation had taken. "Hey man, don't worry. I can totally be your new wingman."

"Really?" Seventeen let out a short laugh as he scoffed.

"Of course! Well, except that I'm not that good at talking to girls. Though I guess that would make you look good."

The android sighed as he looked up at the sky. "Well I guess it doesn't matter, because it would be guys that you would have to talk to."

Oh. _Oh_.

Gohan almost fell out of the sky when it dawned on him what Seventeen meant. That was certainly unexpected.

"So what you're saying is that…"

"…I'm gay." Seventeen's face hardened momentarily. "Is that a problem?"

"W-what? Of course not" Gohan flailed about in the sky as he responded. "I guess it was just…unexpected. Besides… ' _Me too._ ' No matter how hard he thought it, the half-Saiyan could not bring himself to say the words. "…I could care less who you want to fuck" Gohan finished lamely.

He sucked.


	4. Chapter 4

_Hey, I'm back with another chapter! I've been getting really pissed off at the way my fic is appearing on the site (e.g. no spaces between paragraphs, not page breaks), appearing really differently to how I wrote it in Word. I've gone back and changed the past few chapters so hopefully it looks ok now, and my OCD can leave me alone._

 _I'm also considering uploading this fic to AO3, which is my preferred site to publish stuff on. If I do, I'll post a link in my profile._

 _Once again, enjoy, and please leave a review if you enjoy it!_

 _Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, or any of its characters._

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan woke up feeling like he'd been on the receiving end of a Recoome Kick.

The half-Saiyan moaned as he cracked open his eyelids, immediately wishing he hadn't, as light blinded his vision. Realising through the pounding in his head that he wasn't in his room, the teen sat up and looked around. Apart from the bed he was in and a dresser propped against the wall, the room was basically empty. Gohan's vision swam as he edged his way out of the bed, before suddenly realising he was naked except for his underwear. Thinking back to the night before Gohan remembered that he had decided to stay at Seventeen's apartment. ' _That still doesn't explain where my clothes are_.' With there being ni sight of his clothes in the room, Gohan timidly walked towards the door, before deciding to throw caution to the wind and opened it.

"Hey, you're up! How do you feel?"

The teen winced as the sound of Seventeen's voice pierced his ears. The android was situated behind a kitchen bench, flipping what appeared to be pancakes over a stove. Gohan decided it was unfair how happy the man looked, the results of last night's session not seeming to affect him. Seventeen was wearing a loose singlet shirt and shorts, with his hair tied back into a loose ponytail. The half-Saiyan became more self-conscious at his own lack of clothing, as he brought his hands down to attempt to cover his state of undress.

"Like I just ate a bowl of sand. Um, where are my clothes?"

Seventeen laughed as he scooped a pancake out of the pan and onto a plate. "Turns out alcohol and flying isn't that good of a mix." At Gohan's look of confusion, the man pointed at his underwear. "You vomited all over your clothes, dude. I had to put them in the wash last night. My roommate just moved out, so you slept in his old room."

The teen groaned as he sat down on a nearby couch. "Oh fuck me." Embarrassment seized Gohan as he ran his hands over his face. He was such a mess. "Shit! Did you grab my stuff out of my pockets?"

"Way ahead of you, big guy." Seventeen pointed over to where Gohan's phone, wallet and ki suppressor sat on the bench. The teen reluctantly turned on his phone, only to see a barrage of missed calls and texts from his mother.

"Fuuuuck. My mum is gonna flip when I get home."

"Yeah, I did here your phone ringing a couple of times last night. Pancake?" Gohan eagerly accepted the android's offer of food, but regretted it the moment he swallowed his first bite and his stomach lurched.

"Ugh, maybe I should take it slower." The teen put the rest of his pancake down on his plate, instead opting for a glass of water. "I don't get it, how are you not hungover? Is that another weird android power?"

"Ha, I wish! Nah man, I've just gotten used to it over the years." Seventeen took a bite out of his own pancake before continuing. "I've been twenty-one years old for seven years straight now. Besides, I'm actually mostly human. I've just got a couple of mechanical upgrades here and there. If Gero actually knew his shit he should've called us cyborgs, not androids."

"Well I'm still gonna think of you as an android."

Seventeen rolled his eyes, but there was a smile on his lips as he continued to eat. Gohan's phone pinged again, and the teen was surprised to see it was a text from Videl.

 _You free today? – Videl_

Gohan grinned as he types out a reply saying that he was, before glancing up at the android. "What are you gonna do today?"

"Eh, not much I suppose. I've got work tonight, so I'll probably just hang around here and play video games. You?"

The teen paused, seeing an incoming text from Videl saying to meet her, Erasa and Sharpner at her house at 2 pm, before looking back at the android. "I'm gonna meet some friends this arvo, but not much this morning." He quickly typed off a quick text to his mother, letting her know he was alright.

 _Just stayed over at a friend's. I'll be home tonight. – Gohan_

Gohan inwardly grimaced. His mum was gonna be so mad. Without thinking anymore about it, he muted notifications from her, and turned back to the android. Seventeen grinned a wide, friendly grin. "You want to play some PlayStation? I've got the new Mortal Kombat."

"Mortal Kombat?"

"Oh man" the android chuckled. "You thought your fights were brutal, just wait till you play this game."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

"Holy fucking kami!" Gohan winced as his character was decapitated by Seventeen's, before the onscreen avatar crushed the skull between his hands. "I should've killed Cell this way. Although I guess he would've just grown back."

Beside him, Seventeen laughed as he clicked onto the main menu. "I know right? It's so violent."

"Seriously, someone _has_ to show this game to Vegeta. He'd love it." Gohan looked at his watch to see that it was currently just after 1:45 pm. "Shit, I'd better go. Thanks for the clothes by the way. I'll return them as soon as I can."

Seventeen waved his hand at the teen. "Don't worry about it, take your time. Besides, your fat ass has probably stretched them too much for me." It was true. The clothes bought to suit Seventeen's leaner frame were stretched over Gohan's muscular body, his pectorals and biceps pulling the fabric tight over them. The teen laughed as he slapped Seventeen on the shoulder, before getting up to leave.

"I'll see myself out, don't bother getting up."

"Okay, I'll have your clothes ready for next time. See ya dude."

Gohan waved at the android as he slipped out the front door and into the hallway. ' _Wow, that was some night_.' The teen grinned to himself as he made his way down the steps of the apartment complex. Last night had probably been the most fun he'd ever had, being able to relax and hang out with someone close to his age who actually knew about his powers. ' _It would've been more fun if you had manned up and told him that you liked guys too_.' Gohan shook any negative thoughts from his mind as he exited the complex and made his way to a back alley, before turning Super Saiyan and taking off into the sky. His whole body seemed to lurch as he fought down the urge to be sick while flying.

Before long, Satan mansion came into view, and the teen quickly landed out of sight and powered down to his base form. Stepping out from behind the tree he'd landed near, Gohan ran a hand through his unruly hair as he walked towards the front gate. After Videl buzzed him in the front gate, the teen made his way up to the front door, where the girl was waiting.

"Hey Gohan! How's it going? Ooh never mind that, you look wrecked. Big night last night?" Videl grinned as she took in his appearance. The girl was wearing a singlet shirt coupled with a pair of jean shorts, her hair done up in her trademark pigtails.

"I guess you could say that. I had a bit to drink with my friend" Gohan laughed as he scratched the back of his neck.

Videl smiled wide. "It's official then. We've corrupted you enough to get you a social life." Gohan pouted in mock hurt as the raven-haired girl led him into the house, where Erasa and Sharpner were relaxing on the couch in front of the TV. The both got up to greet him, the blonde girl going so far as to pull him into a tight hug.

"Gohan, good to see you dude." Sharpner slapped the teen on the shoulder as he beckoned to the mini fridge in the room. "Do you want a beer?"

"I think if anymore alcohol touches my body within the next few days I'll vomit, so no thanks man." Gohan winced as he eyed Sharpner's drink, the mere sight of the liquid enough to send his stomach churning.

Sharpner looked at him with confusion before Videl chimed in. "He's a little hungover, Sharpie. Apparently our resident goody two shoes got wasted last night."

The blonde male crowed in amusement as he threw his hands up in the air. "You mean Gohan has friends besides us? I'm shocked." Gohan playfully flipped him off before collapsing down on an empty couch.

"What are we watching?" Gohan asked as he eyed the current program with hesitation.

"Well" Sharpner started, his eyes narrowing in Erasa's direction, "we were meant to be watching the big game, but _someone_ wanted to check out the gossip channel."

Erasa scoffed as she turned her nose into the air. "Well excuse me for trying to keep up to date with the world. Besides, the game hasn't even started, it's still the pregame interviews." Sharpner didn't seem to care, as he dived for the remote, only to be met with and equally determined Erasa. As the two wrestled for control of the TV, Videl came to sit beside Gohan, shaking her head ruefully at the two blondes.

"I swear they're eight years old, not eighteen. So," the girl turned her whole body to face the teen, "what did you get up to last night that got you so drunk?"

The half-Saiyan cracked a grin at Videl's persistence. "I was just catching up with someone I hadn't spent time with in a while. We just played pool at the Devil's Kitchen and got drunk. Like, _really_ drunk." Gohan smiled at the memory. "And then we just ran around for a bit outside, and I stayed over at their house so my mum wouldn't flip her shit at me being out so late."

Videl smiled, but the grin did not reach her eyes. "You really like this girl, don't you?"

"W-what?! No it was a just a friend. A _guy_ friend. You know, Sev? The bartender Erasa likes?" Gohan stuttered as his eyes widened. ' _Shit, was it that obvious_?'

"Oh" Videl's mouth dropped a little before she started laughing. "From the way you were talking, it sounded like you were on a date."

' _Fuck Gohan, pull your shit together. Wait. Was it a date last night? No, of course not, don't be silly_.' Gohan thought to himself as he mulled over Videl's words.

He settled on giggling nervously. "Nup, just hanging out with a friend. No dating of any kind."

The girl suddenly smirked, her voice becoming teasing. "So those are his clothes you're wearing then?"

Sharpner and Erasa had chosen that moment to re-join the conversation. "Yeah G, how come you're wearing clothes that tight? If I didn't know you any better, I'd say you were flaunting your muscles." The blonde haired man suddenly chuckled. "I can practically see your nipples, man."

Gohan flushed red with embarrassment, trying to stutter out an answer. "I m-may or may not have vomited all over myself last night, so Sev gave me some of his to wear while he washed mine. A-and yeah, I'm a little bit bigger than him, so it looked a bit revealing."

The other man broke out into a fit of laughter, falling back against the couch. Erasa just smirked as she eyed him carefully. "I'm not complaining Gohan. Just means more eye candy for us girls." She winked at him, making Gohan flush an even darker shade of red. Videl too was laughing beside him, but a small spot of red was present over her cheeks.

Evidently Sharpner had won the battle for the remote, for Gohan noticed that the TV was now showing the lead-up to what looked like a baseball match. Before Gohan could comment, a familiar face showed up on the screen, as Yamcha appeared wearing a suit and tie. He was holding a microphone out to another man dressed in a baseball uniform, and grinning a wide grin as his eyes drifted to the camera.

"Hey look, it' Yamcha," Sharpner pointed at the screen, before turning to Gohan. "It's him that you know, right?"

"Yeah," Gohan mumbled as he stared at the screen. It was so weird seeing Yamcha so full of confidence, as the man was clearly in his element. Gohan's most vivid memories of the man were of him panicking in the lead-ups to the fights with Frieza, the androids and Cell. He had remembered feeling sympathetic for the man, but also a little annoyed with the lack of spine he showed. But here, on TV, the man was like a whole other person, clearly leading all forms of conversation as the program switched to him in the commentator's box. "I hadn't realised he'd retired though. I guess it's been a while since we chatted about his career." Gohan felt a little guilty for not having shown more of an interest in the man's life recently. ' _Then again, when was the last time he asked anything to do with me_?' Gohan thought hotly, before pushing the feeling of resentment down.

"Yeah well, he is like forty years old. Besides, he stayed on way past the usual age of retirement. The man was a freak." Sharpner smiled. "I remember watching him play when I was younger."

Suddenly, an idea popped into Gohan's head. "Hey, I think if I asked Yamcha, I could get us tickets into the VIP box. You interested man?"

Sharpner's entire face lit up as he smiled widely. "You serious?! That would be fucking amazing, G."

The half-Saiyan nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah of course. I reckon he'd be able to get all four of us in. You girls interested?"

"I don't know," Videl frowned at him. "Baseball has always been really boring to me. If it were a martial arts tournament, I'd be right there."

"Well you know, Yamcha did compete in the World Martial Arts Tournament a few times. He didn't do that well though."

"Oh of course, I remember that!" Videl winced. "Kami, I remember the footage of Tien Shinhan breaking his leg. I can't believe he came back from an injury that big and went on to play baseball."

Gohan smirked, remembering all the times Yamcha had been knocked down a peg by the Z-fighters bringing that moment up. It always managed to shut the loud human up without fail. Thinking about Videl's enthusiasm for all things martial arts, Gohan decided to bring up something he'd been mulling over for a few days.

"Hey guys, so I know I haven't known you all for that long, but next month it's my birthday, and there's gonna be a party that Yamcha, Bulma and a whole bunch of my dad's martial arts friends will be coming to. You guys are welcome to come too, that is, if you want to…" Gohan trailed off nervously.

Sharpner smiled widely at him. "I'd love to, man. Not just to meet Yamcha, but also to celebrate!"

Videl and Erasa nodded along with him. "I can't wait!" Erasa squeaked. "If I'm gonna be meeting Bulma Brief, then I have to start looking for an outfit immediately." The girl's face quickly morphed into one of confusion. "But wait, I thought you were already eighteen, Gohan?"

"Oh yeah, I am. I'm turning nineteen, actually. So I guess that makes me a year older than you guys."

Videl nodded as if it made perfect sense. "It's because of your home schooling, right? I'm turning nineteen this year as well. I took a year off of school when my dad was travelling around the world celebrating Cell's defeat. I just couldn't keep up with the workload and travel."

"Yeah, that's the reason," Gohan laughed nervously. ' _It's not at all because I spent a year in a room that bends space and time, making me a year older suddenly_.' He looked back at his friends. "So you'll come? That's great! Although if it's possible could you not let my mum found out that I've had alcohol? She'll ground me for the rest of my life if she finds out."

"But you're already eighteen. Why would she be angry about it?" Erasa asked.

"That's my mum for you. She's always been really overprotective like that. Although I guess with my childhood, she kinda has a reason."

"What happened when you were a kid?" Videl asked, eyes curious.

Gohan inwardly cursed, realising he'd potentially given away too much. Thinking on his feet, he replied to the girl. "You mean apart from the whole Cell clusterfuck? Um, when I was four I was…separated from my Dad and got lost in the wilderness for a while."

The girl frowned. "Oh no, that's terrible. How long were you lost for?"

"Three days."

Erasa gasped as she held a hand to her mouth. "Oh my kami! You would've been so scared. And for three whole days!"

The half-Saiyan sweat-dropped. ' _Kami, good thing I didn't say it was a whole year._ ' He paused before continuing. "Yeah, so I guess my mum does have a fair reason. But I still get so sick of her wanting to know exactly where I am at all times."

"Yeah, how else are you gonna be able to sneak off to meet the ladies?" Gohan coughed at Sharpner's remark, causing the blonde to laugh. "Relax, G. I'm just kidding. You wouldn't know a vagina if it landed on your face."

Gohan flipped the other man off as his three friends giggled. "To be fair, Sharpner," Erasa began. "Some girls like innocence. Then they get to teach the guy" she argued, winking at Gohan.

"Hey! I'm not a kid!" He protested, mock pouting. "Just because I grow up isolated doesn't mean I don't have the internet."

Sharpner chuckled as he reached out to fist bump the half-Saiyan. "Don't worry, G. With me as your wingman, we'll get you a girl in no time."

Unfortunately, that was exactly what Gohan was afraid of.

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan touched down in front of the Son household, grinning to himself as he took in the smell of his mother's cooking. That warm feeling was almost immediately replaced by one of dread as he remembered that he would have to face his mother. No sooner had the half-Saiyan knocked on the door that it was slammed open, Chi-Chi rushing to him in earnest.

"GOHAN! WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?! I'VE BEEN WORRIED SICK!" Chi-Chi screamed as she pulled the teen into a tight hug. "I swear, not getting that microchip implanted in you was the worst mistake I've ever made as a parent."

' _Oh joy_.' Gohan pulled himself out of his mother's embrace as he replied. "I've just been out with my friends, Mum. I'm allowed to have a life."

Chi-Chi's face morphed from one of worry into a fierce glare. "That doesn't excuse you from not coming home last night. Sending you to school was a terrible idea. I should call the principal and have you un-enrolled so you can be here where I can keep an eye on you."

"Please don't do that." Gohan shot back with determination. "I finally have friends my own age, and I'm having more fun than I've ever had in my life. Please, Mum."

His mother's face crumpled as she took in her son's resolve. The woman just shook her head as she threw her hands up and walked away. "At least you're keeping your grades up. As long as your studies come first I guess you can keep gallivanting about. But the minute you come home with a girlfriend I'm pulling you out of school!"

Gohan chuckled to himself. "Don't worry, Mum. There'll be no girlfriends, I promise." He took that opportunity to duck into the kitchen and load up on the leftovers his mother had kept out on the bench for him. Grabbing as much food as he could hold in his arms, the teen began to walk to his room before he was interrupted.

"That's a very small amount of food for you, Gohan. Should I be worried?" Chi-Chi asked as she took in the sight of the half-Saiyan with a much smaller portion of food than what was regular.

"I think it must be Bulma's ki suppressor. It works by slowing down the metabolism of my cells, so it must make me eat less as well. Also makes me look normal during lunchtime at school."

"If that's the case, I should get her to make one for Goten too. Kami knows it will save me half the trouble when cooking." Gohan heard his mother mutter as he dashed up the stairs and into the hallway.

He stopped briefly at Goten's room to say hi to his brother, who was sitting on the floor of his room and playing with his toys. After promising to play with the boy the next day, Gohan finally reached his room, setting down the food on his bed as he was finally able to take off Seventeen's tight clothes. ' _Thank Kami Mum didn't pick up on the clothes. I would've had a hard time explaining it to her_.' He traded out the clothes for a singlet and a pair of boxers as he sat cross-legged on his bed and began to tuck into his food. After what seemed like an eternity, his stomach had finally settled down earlier that afternoon while he was Videl's house. Unfortunately, that matter had not stopped the teasing he'd received at the hands of his friends. Gohan didn't mind, though. If anything, the banter elevated him, making him feel as if he truly belonged among them.

Gohan's phone pinged, alerting the teen to a received message. He grinned as he saw it was from Seventeen.

 _Clothes are all washed and ready for you to pick up when ready. – Seventeen_

The half-Saiyan typed out a reply as he realised he too would have to wash the clothes Seventeen lent him.

 _Thanks man. Aren't you meant to be working? – Gohan_

 _On break atm. What're you up to? – Seventeen_

 _Just in bed relaxing. – Gohan_

Gohan waited for about a minute before his phone pinged again.

 _Just relaxing, eh? I'll let you get back to your fun. – Seventeen_

 _What? – Gohan_

 _Usually relaxing in bed = having a wank. – Seventeen_

As he realised what the other man was insinuating, Gohan's face flushed bright red as he quickly typed out a reply.

 _I'm not doing that at all! I really AM just relaxing. – Gohan_

 _Ok, ok. There's not anything wrong with it, you know. – Seventeen._

Gohan sighed, realising the conversation what quickly going in _that_ direction.

 _I'm not saying there is! I usually just wait until it's a bit later than 9:45 ffs. – Gohan_

 _Oooooh, sneaky Gohan. What would your mummy say? – Seventeen_

 _Fuck you. – Gohan_

 _You love me. Gotta get back to work now. Have fun ;) – Seventeen_

The teen groaned as he put his phone down and looked down at his boxers, seeing that the conversation he'd just had had made his body expect a certain activity.

' _Fuck me_.'

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

 _Hopefully the next chapter will be up soon. Quick question though: should I include smut/sex scenes in future chapters? Let me know in a review if you think I should._


	5. Chapter 5

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan grunted in effort as he pushed the barbell up one final time before shifting it to sit on its rack. Sitting up, he wiped his brow and huffed out a breath. It was amazing how much the ki suppressor affected him, making him have trouble with simply working out in a gym. He wondered idly if they would actually be effective when it came to properly training, like with the gravity rooms. Figuring he'd ask Bulma, Gohan reached over to his water bottle to take a quick swig.

"Holy shit dude! That was fucking epic."

From his position behind the bench as a spotter, Sharpner grinned wildly at him. The man was dressed in a simple black tank top, his skin shining slightly with sweat. Gohan took a small moment to admire his large shoulders as he looked at his friend. ' _In a totally platonic way, of course_.'

"Seriously, that was 250 pounds! All those years running around in the mountains must have paid off big time."

The half-Saiyan chuckled slightly as he stood up to take Sharpner's place behind the bench. "I guess so" he replied as Sharpner adjusted the weights to his lower wetting. "So how are things going with that girl, um… Angela right?"

"Pretty shit" Sharpner lamented with a roll of his eyes. "She's cute and all, but a little crazy. One date and she's wanting to follow me everywhere, do everything together. I need my space, dude!"

Gohan laughed, getting in position as Sharpner laid down to begin his reps. "Maybe you're just afraid of a little commitment" he teased.

"Commitment is one thing, man." He let out a breath of air as he pumped his arms up and down. "This chick" another huff "is fucking batshit."

After finishing his set, Sharpner turned his gaze on Gohan. "Enough with this grilling of me, though. What is even up with you dude? We gotta get you a girl."

Blanching slightly at the change of target, Gohan followed Sharpner over to the free weights. "Ugh, please don't. I'm only just getting my footing with actually having a life. I don't need to throw a girlfriend into the mix."

"I'm not talking about a girlfriend. I just mean we should get you out there, you know, playing the field."

"What?"

Sharpner looked at Gohan like he was clueless. "Come on. A hook up? One-night stand? The dirty deed?" He lifted a pair of dumbbells, alternating his arms as he curled them up towards his body.

"Ohhh." The realisation of what Sharpner meant set in. "N-no, don't do that. I'm not sure if I'm really ready for that."

"You're so freakin' cute sometimes, G" the blonde laughed. "Seriously dude, a pretty face and innocent. I don't know how the ladies haven't scooped you up yet."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

"I'm just saying, it would be nice to actually see him around the house once and a while."

Chi-Chi sighed as she looked over the balcony she was sitting on at Capsule Corp., Bulma and Eighteen next to her as they watched their children play in the garden below. Trunks and Goten were kicking a soccer ball around, Marron running around after them while occasionally getting side-tracked by something nearby.

Beside her, Bulma smiled knowingly as she sipped her glass of lemonade. "You shouldn't worry, Chi-Chi. The way Gohan is behaving is completely normal for someone his age. In fact, I'd be a bit worried if he wasn't breaking out of his shell a little bit."

"What's that supposed to mean" Chi-Chi asked as she crossed her arms.

"I didn't mean it like that." Bulma held her hands up in a gesture of peace. "I just meant that Gohan has lived a pretty sheltered life these past seven years. He needs to grow up and make friends his age. And that means going out at night and on the weekends."

"I guess you're right. I doesn't mean I have to like it. He's only been at this school for a month and it's like he's a whole other person." Chi-Chi responded as she watched her son run around. Things were so simple to the young boy, unlike with his older brother. Where Goten was sweet but loud, Gohan was becoming more and more secretive and quiet by the day. He still treated her with respect, of course, but more often than not found himself out somewhere in the city without notifying her where he was. Chi-Chi found herself regretful that Gohan's childhood had been littered with such tragedy, and that he had never had the opportunity to be a kid like Goten had. Was Gohan's current rebellious state a result of his messed up childhood perhaps?

Bulma giggled a little, smiling wistfully to herself. "Boy, do I miss those days. At least Gohan hasn't run away from his home and family, like I did, right?"

The black haired woman grinned despite herself, thinking of Bulma during her teenage years. Turning to their other friend, Chi-Chi continued the conversation. "What were your teenage years like, Eighteen?"

The android woman looked up from where she had been watching her daughter play, a small smile on her face. Sometimes, Chi-Chi thought, it was easy to forget that the woman appeared to be only in her early twenties. Eighteen had long since started to dress above her age, wearing her hair in such a way that made her appear much older than she was stuck being for eternity. ' _I suppose she does it to try and match Krillin's older age_.'

Eighteen paused, mulling over the question. "Before Dr. Gero took us, Seventeen and I used to jump from place to place, drinking and partying our lives away. We fell into some pretty bad circles, actually. So as long as Gohan stays away from what we did, he'll be fine."

"Wow, sounds like you lived quite the life" Bulma laughed as she reclined back in her chair. Turning back to Chi-Chi, she spoke continued. "Have you met any of Gohan's friends, anyway?"

"No, he barely talks about them. It really bothers me that he won't open up to me anymore."

The blue haired woman smirked at Chi-Chi, before digging around in her purse. "Well, he hasn't said anything to me either, but we could always stalk his Facebook profile."

"His what?" Chi-Chi questioned, completely lost.

"His Facebook. It's an app on the phone that lets you connect with and see what other people are up to." Bulma switched on her phone. "We can see if he has any photos of him and his friends."

Still not quite getting it, Chi-Chi looked over at Bulma's screen. "So what, Gohan will just put a picture up on this app and anyone can see it?!"

"Only his friends," Bulma explained as she scrolled through the app to find Gohan. "Ah, here he is. See? He's got a picture up of him and someone. Hang on."

Chi-Chi waited as Bulma pulled the picture up to full screen, before seeing it in full. Gohan was there, grinning brightly in a button up shirt beside an attractive girl with dark hair, the two of them each holding a beer as they sat at a table. Chi-Chi took a moment to examine the photo, first noticing the girl next to her son. She was very pretty, that was certain. Her hair was dangling in twin pigtails, sitting lightly on her shoulders. The mother of two also noticed how happy her son appeared to be, his eyes lighting up as he grinned at the camera.

She hadn't seen that light in Gohan's eyes since his father had died.

"She's a very pretty girl," Eighteen commented as the three all looked at the photo. "You don't think that…"

"No! My Gohan would know better than to get mixed up with a girl so soon." At the knowing looks of the other two women, Chi-Chi continued to protest. "Gohan went to school to learn and to make friends, not to get a girlfriend thank you very much."

Bulma smirked at Eighteen, before continuing to scroll through. The three women looked over picture after picture of Gohan, oohing and aahing at the three or four new pictures he was tagged in. The majority of them seemed to include the same dark haired girl, a blonde girl with short hair, or a blonde man with a muscular body. In every one, however, Gohan appeared sporting that same grin that Chi-Chi had seen so often on Goku.

It wasn't until they grew a little bored of doing so that Eighteen suddenly grabbed the phone out of Bulma's hands, eyes glued to the screen. "You've got to be kidding me…"

Before Bulma or Chi-Chi could ask, the blonde android turned the phone back around, showing it to the two women.

"Since when was your son friends with my brother?"

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

The sounds of grunting and panting filled the room as Gohan and Erasa sat watching their friends train in the Satan gym. Sharpner was busy pounding his fists into the punching bag in front of him, boxing gloves keeping his hands safe, while Videl dismantled opponent after opponent in the ring. Gohan had to admit, he was impressed. The girl was small in stature, but what she lacked in size she made up for in skill and technique. The way she used her opponent's body weight against them was amazing.

' _With some proper training by Piccolo or someone, she could become a serious fighter,_ ' he thought, watching as the raven haired girl swept the legs out from under a man twice her size, sending him crashing to the floor.

"She's amazing, isn't she?" Erasa spouted from beside him. The blonde was tapping away at her phone, occasionally holding it up to take a picture of herself. "Some people reckon that Videl's gonna give Mr. Satan a run for his money at the next World Martial Arts Tournament!"

Thinking back to the tales he had been told of his father in those tournaments, facing off against Jackie Chun, Tien Shinhan and Piccolo, Gohan smiled wryly. It was amazing how the quality in fighting had decreased since Mr. Satan had filled the world with his propaganda. These days, no fighter even thought to practise the techniques of old, brushing them off as cheap tricks.

"Yeah, she is" he replied to his friend. Looking over at Sharpner, he asked "have the two of them ever fought before?"

"Once or twice, I suppose. Videl always wipes the floor with Sharpie, though."

In the ring, Videl paused after dropping another fighter, sweat dripping down her brow. She signalled something to the training coach, before ducking under the ropes, grabbing her water bottle and a towel as she approached them.

"Uh, shit. I'm so spent" she huffed out as she collapsed next to Gohan and Erasa, wiping her face with her training towel. "I think I'm gonna call it a day. What have you guys been chatting about."

Erasa pouted slightly as she crossed her arms. "Gohan won't let me experiment on him. I told him I need a male subject to help me out for my future, but he won't do it!"

"I like my hair how it is, though" Gohan protested. The blonde had been extremely persistent in her pursuit to cut Gohan's hair, claiming that it was to be practise for her future career as a beautician.

"C'mon! Just a little bit off the top, to get rid of the spikes. And maybe that bit that dangles down." She reached over to point at Gohan's hair.

Gohan gasped in shock. "Not the bang! No way, you're crazy." He clasped his hands over the lock of hair that lay over his forehead. "Ask Sharpner, he's got more hair than all of us combined."

"Please" Videl scoffed. "Sharpner would sooner give up his muscles than his hair." No sooner had she said that when the man in question sauntered over, towel around his neck.

"Damn right. You touch one beautiful hair on this head and its bye-bye friendship, E." Sharpner looked down at Videl. "Are you done for the day?"

"Yeah, but I thought you had another half hour to go."

The blonde man shook his head as he grabbed his gym bag. "Nah, I'm gonna be naughty and skip my last set. Having a bit of an off day, to be honest."

Videl looked like she was about to berate him, but was distracted by the loud noises coming from everyone else in the gym. The various gym goers and coaches were crowding around something, chattering excitedly and clapping.

"Now, now, fellas. It's good to see you all too."

"Oh, shit," Videl groaned, throwing her head in her hands. "What is he doing here?"

The crowd seemed to part like the Red sea, and Hercule Satan marched through, people yelling behind him. After a few brief moments signing autographs and talking to them, Mr. Satan made his way over to the group of four, the rest of the people in the room either going back to their training or chatting excitedly among themselves.

"Videl, baby. How come you're not training?"

"I just finished, Daddy. What're you doing here?"

Mr. Satan laughed loudly, his hands resting on his hips. "You mean to say a father can't want to see his daughter without raising questions?! HAHAHA!"

Watching the man act like… well himself, Gohan inwardly rolled his eyes. ' _Can't he see that he's acting like a complete nutter?_ '

Suddenly, he found Mr. Satan's gaze on him, as the older man narrowed his eyes. "Who's this squirt? You didn't tell me you were bringing another boy over. I haven't done a background check on him yet."

"Daddy" Videl groaned, "this is the gym, not our house. Besides, I've already mentioned Gohan to you before, he's a new friend."

Gohan waved his hand slightly, grinning despite himself. "Hello, sir. It's nice to meet you."

The conversation was quiet for a few seconds, before Mr. Satan spoke again. "So what's your deal then, son?"

"I'm sorry. My what?"

"Your deal." The world champion glared at him from his position standing up. "Are you planning on trying to woo my daughter? Or are you just gonna ride her coat tails and reap the perks? Guys like you always want something." The two stared at each other before Gohan went to open his mouth. He was, however, immediately talked over by the older man. "No! I don't wanna hear your excuse. I want you to stop seeing my daughter."

Videl gasped. "Daddy! That's not fair. I-"

"It's okay, Videl." Gohan stopped her. "I can talk for myself." Feeling all eyes on him, he stood up to stand level with Mr. Satan. "Sir, I can assure you that my reasons for befriending your daughter are completely real. Money is not something I either need or desire, and I'm not trying to date her."

"How dare you speak back to me!" Mr. Satan roared. "I outta-"

Growing tired of the conversation, Gohan discretely fumbled his watch to turn off the ki suppressor. Knowing that Videl, Erasa and Sharpner couldn't see his face, he let his eyes flash green for a second. The words Mr. Satan was shouting died on his lips as his mouth dropped open and his eyes went wide. Although he couldn't see his own face, Gohan knew he wasn't smiling. He could feel the hard glare of his eyes as he stared at the man.

"Y-you… you're- how is this…"

"Like I said, my intentions are innocent. I just want to be friends with your daughter. Is that okay?"

Mr. Satan stared at Gohan, dumbfounded. Behind him, he could feel his friends' confusion growing. After another moment of silence, Mr. Satan let out a bellowing laugh.

"HAHAHA! I like you, kid. You've got balls. I reckon you're exactly the type of person she needs around her at this age." He paused, suddenly looking worried again as he turned back to his daughter. "Listen, Pumpkin. I gotta get going. My publicist wants to talk to me about our new line of energy drinks. Okay, gotta run. See ya!" Without waiting for a reply, Mr. Satan hightailed it out of the gym, not even pausing to farewell his desperate fans.

Videl stood dumbfounded beside him. "What just happened?"

"I don't know." Sharpner muttered. "Gohan?"

The half-Saiyan turned, his trademark grin on his face. "I guess he likes me?"

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Later that night, after Videl had gone to bed, Hercule sat on the couch in his room, nursing a glass of whiskey. He couldn't get the confrontation from earlier that day out of his head. Surely he had been mistaken, right? There was no way those guys from the Cell Games were back. The green man with the pointy ears had said they wouldn't bother him again.

So why had that puny kid's eyes flashed green? Hercule remembered those eyes vividly, piercing into him from the four golden haired warriors at the Cell Games. The golden haired fighter in the orange gi had vanished partway during the tournament, and from the cries of his friends Hercule had figured he was dead. So it couldn't have been him today at the gym. Guessing the punk's age was similar to his daughter's, he realised it would have to have been the kid to actually killed Cell.

' _What are you talking about? You're imagining things. There's no way the scrawny kid was the Delivery Boy. Pull yourself together!_ '

As he changed the channel on the TV, a loud noise made him startle. Looking at the curtains to his balcony blow in the night breeze, he slowly got out of his chair and walked towards them. Shit, he needed to get over this thing with the green eyes. Suddenly every bump in the night was making him crap his pants.

Walking out onto the balcony, Hercule was relieved to see that there was nothing there. Shaking his head quickly, he turned to go back inside. ' _See? No one would even think about-_ '

"I always figured you were more of a Scotch man, y'know?"

Startled, Hercule yelped as he spun back around to see a man sitting on the wall of his balcony, facing out towards the garden with their legs dangling over the edge. In his hands was the bottle of whiskey that Hercule had _left in the room_. The man's golden hair stood out against the night sky, and when he turned to face Hercule, it felt like those emerald green eyes were bearing into his soul.

"W-what? You're h-him!"

The golden haired demon smirked at him before taking a swig of the whiskey. "Shit, this stuff tastes horrible," he grunted, wincing. "But hey, it's free alcohol so I can't complain." The man swung his body around, before hopping off the railing. "I take it you know why I'm here?"

"Y-you're gonna expose me! Aren't you?"

The man chuckled, putting the bottle of whiskey on a table nearby. "No, of course not. As much as you annoy me, I'm actually glad you took the credit. The shit Videl has to deal with on a daily basis is something I wouldn't want, for me or my family."

Hercule gulped, the truth cementing itself. "So that was you today." Suddenly feeling brave, he raised his voice. "Stay the hell away from my daughter, you punk!"

"No."

"What?! What do you mean, no?!"

The Delivery Boy just threw that shit-eating smirked at him again. "I meant it. I like your daughter." Obviously seeing the displeasure in Hercule's face, he rolled his eyes. "Not like that, jeez. Apparently all anyone thinks about is sex these days. What I meant was that I want to be friends with your daughter. I'm not planning to seduce her, or tell her the truth, or whisk her off into the mountains. I just like being her friend. Is that okay, or are we gonna have a problem?"

It seemed too good to be true. Here he was, the moniker of Hercule's past, coming back to haunt him. He had thought the man would be wanting money, or to threaten him, yet here he was, sitting here laughing as drank all of Hercule's whiskey.

"What's the catch?"

"There is no catch." He smirked his annoying smirk again. "Although remember if you try anything I can always reveal the truth about you. Or just kill you."

Hercule's heart skipped a beat. "You wouldn't."

"Nah, you're right. I wouldn't do that. You wanna know why? Because I'm a nice guy. Are you a nice guy, Mr. Satan?"

The silence grew between them as Hercule quivered under the man (his name was Gonad, right?) stared at him with his green eyes, as if he was picking him apart piece by piece. Finally, he managed to get out a shaky nod.

The golden haired man grinned a wide grin. "Awesome. I want us to be friends, Mr. Satan, I really do." He suddenly turned around, grabbing the bottle of whiskey back off the table. "Give Videl my regards, and thanks for the alcohol." With that, he flew over the side of the balcony and off into the night.

Hercule stood there for a second, before heading back inside. Sitting back down in his chair, he reached out to pour himself another glass of whiskey before realising the man had taken his bottle.

 _And_ _flew away with it_.

Holy fucking shit.


End file.
